So I'm defiantely "Chickening"...This is a term a friend of mine made up in undergrad that accurately portrays what I look like when I'm losing it from anxiety...you know...pacing around the room nervously moving my body-inadvertantly looking like a chicken. (Maybe that's too much information)

With that said-It has been a week since Chapman has received a DVD of my work. They sent an email requesting a sample about a week and a half ago. I have two questions for you guys...

1) Has anyone else sent work to Chapman?


2) What type of materials did people send in their portfolio film? (Not just to Chapman specifically)

After much deliberation I just sent my most recent short in full (RT @ 10min)...I of course added that if they wanted to see more than I would gladly send it off. All my work is so different it's hard to pick just one piece that represents my best stuff...you know?...Some have stronger story--some "prettier" technically speaking. Okay I'm rambling...It's that chicken thing again but now I'm doing it while I type. AGHHHH!!!!!

Any thoughts ???

Chapman is all about the story. SO hopefully you sent a strong piece in that concern.

So far, you're the only person that I know who was asked to send in a DVD (or anything) to Chapman. What exactly did they ask from you? Were they really vague about what they were interested in seeing and did they specifically limit how much content you could send?

I think it's good that you were able to send in a full piece of work. Something like a montage of clips probably wouldn't have been very helpful storytelling-wise.

I'm still waiting to hear anything at all from Chapman. It's been two months and counting for me. I've actually set up a widget on my computer that shows how much time has passed since they officially received all my application materials. Although, I haven't developed any chicken movements yet...

I emailed the chair asking when to expect a response, 2 days later I got an email from the graduate assistant, a day later I had a decision.

I've heard of someone else who bugged chapman about hearing a response and got accepted right after they did so.

Maybe its important to remind them that your application is a priority.

So I bugged the Grad Assistant today (did I mention what a nice guy he is??!) and got some new information. He said that all the materials are being reviewed right now and that decisions should be made by the end of April...(We pretty much new that right?)
He went on to say that they haven't decided whether or not they are going to do interviews but they have in the past. The grad asst. is a directing student and he said that he had to interview before he was accepted.

To answer your question ndakoulas they were pretty specific as to what they ased for.

They said:

"The selection committee has reviewed your application and they would like to see more of your work. Please submit a DVD with a complete film or creative sample on it (not a selection of clips) and send it to: ..."

They didn't limit the size of the piece but as I'm sure you know about 10-20 minutes seems to be the standard.

Hey Winterreverie...did you apply to the production MFA (3 Year) with an emphasis in screenwriting or the two year MFA in screenwriting?